This is a list of the most common abbreviation used in naval discussions.
It is not a comprehensive list, nor does it include very common abbreviations
such as US, UK, ft. and km. See http://www.hazegray.org/faq/ for a more comprehensive list
of abbreviations and acronyms. See below for ship designations.

This list is not comphrehensive; it includes only the more common
designations. There are literally hundreds of obscure designations. See
http://www.hazegray.org/faq/
for more complete lists. These designations are US Navy designations, but
they are often unofficially applied to foreign warships. Designations are
listed by type, then in alphabetical order.

It is important to realize that these are designations, not
abbreviations or acronyms. Thus, the letters may not
individually "stand for" anything; it is the designation as a whole that
has some assigned meaning or definition. These definitions can be changed
without changing the letters of the designation.

Base Designations Suffixes are added to these to create complete
designations. Where no suffix is used, the initial letter is used twice
(i.e. DD). A suffix is often added to an existing two- or three-letter
abbreviation at a later date (i.e. DDG, AGF, SSGN).

A -- Auxiliaries

B -- Battleship/battlecruiser

C -- Cruiser

CV -- Aircraft Carrier (originally a cruiser derivative)

D -- Destroyer

F -- Frigate

L -- Ampbibious ships (derived from "L" for "Landing")

M -- Mine craft

P -- Patrol craft

S -- Submarine

Y -- Yard craft

Suffixes These and others are added to base designations to
create complete designations. Many suffixes (i.e. M) have many meanings;
only the most common modern-usage meanings are listed. Suffix meanings as
applied to yard (Y) craft are not included in this list.

People often wonder how names for warships are selected, particularly in
the US Navy. USN has a long-standing (100+ years) naming tradition, but
the scheme has been corrupted in recent years, mostly for political
purposes.

It is often thought that ships are never named for a person while the
person was still alive. This was true until the 1970's. The first ship
named for a then-living person was USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), named in
1975. Other examples of ships named for then-living people include the
following:
USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76)
USS Arleigh Burke (DDG 51)
USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN 709)
USS Jimmy Carter (SSN 23)
USNS Bob Hope (T-AKR 300)

This list includes the traditional and current naming schemes for most
major US warship/auxiliary types, and exceptions to the schemes. When
ships were reclassified from one type to another after commissioning the
original name was almost always retained; these examples are not listed as
exceptions.

People often wonder what the various vessel status categories are. The
most basic are fairly simple, but there are some rather obscure ones.

The following categories are primarily from US Navy practice, but are
widely used and are fairly universal.

Active Status

In Commission: Vessel is in active service, operational, with crew assigned.

In Commission, Full: same as In Commission.

In Commission, Special: Vessel is in a special status but is
still in service. Currently applied to new vessels between the time they
are officially commissioned at the building yard and the time
they are ceremonially commissioned at some other location.

In Service: Similar to In Commission, but applied to smaller
vessels that do not have a permanently assigned crew or have a civilian
(MSC) crew.

Inactive Status

In Commission, In Reserve: Vessel is in service but not fully
operational. Sometimes applied to a ship that was decommissioned for
overhaul, during the period between completion of the overhaul and the
completion of sea trials. Currently applied to nuclear vessels between
the time they start the stripping/scrapping process and the completion of
that process.

Out of Commission: Vessel is no longer in service, not operational, no crew assigned.

Out of Commission, Full: Same as Out of Commission.

Out of Commission, In Reserve: Same as Out of Commission, but the
ship is laid up in maintained reserve, possibly for future reactivation.

Out of Service: Similar to Out of Commission, but for vessels
that were previously In Service.

In Ordinary: Obsolete status, formerly applied to ships laid
up in unmaintained reserve.

Special Status Applied to
ships that are somewhere between fully active and fully out of service.
These status categories are generally used for paperwork purposes and have
little practical meaning. They are rarely used.

Out of Commission, Special

In Service, Special

In Service, In Reserve

Out of Service, Special

Other Status Categories (unofficial)

Decommissioned: Same as Out of Commission.

Discarded: Permanently out of service in preparation for disposal.

Hulk: Vessel is permanently inoperable due to accident, old age,
lack of maintainance or intentional demilitarization.

Laid Up: Equivalent to Out of
Commission, In Reserve.

Mothballed: Equivalent to Out of Commission, In Reserve.

Reserve: Equivalent to Out of Commission, In Reserve.

Paid Off: British/European equivalent of Decommissioned.

Operational Reserve: Ship is crewed and capable of going to sea,
but full crew for combat operations is not assigned.

Stricken: Removed from the (US) Naval
Vessels Register, or (foreign) Navy List for disposal. This indicates
that the Navy is (in theory) finished with the ship and it is to be
disposed of. When a vessel has been stricken it is no longer maintained
in service or in reserve; it is usually stripped of useful equipment.
Upon striking the ship's name is available for assignment to a new vessel.
After striking a vessel is often referred to as a hulk, regardless of its
actual condition.

Informally, for nations that do not maintain a strict NVR/Navy List,
stricken means that a vessel has been permanently removed from service and
is to be disposed of. In almost all cases striking is the final formal
status change before a vessel is disposed of.

Section B.8: Ship Displacements

What do all those displacement terms mean? The following is a general
guide; the exact definitions vary from nation to nation and change over
time.

Standard: As defined in the Washington and London Treaties: "the
ship complete, fully manned, engined, and equipped ready for sea,
including all armament and ammunition, equipment, outfit, provisions and
fresh water for crew, miscellaneous stores and implements of every
description that are intended to be carried in war, but without fuel or
reserve feed water on board."

Normal: As Standard, but with two-thirds supply of stores and
fuel (USN). Also can include all fuels, oils, and water. This is
typically an "average" operational displacement.

Deadweight Tons The carrying capacity of the ship in tons,
including cargo, crew, passengers, fuel, supplies, munitions, etc. The
difference between full load and light ship.

The following are measures of volume not weight, and are applied
only to merchant vessels:

Net Registered Tonnage (NRT): Measure of the internal volume
of the ship which is used for for carrying cargo (i.e. excluding all areas
not used to carry cargo).

Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT): Measure of total internal
volume of a ship, in units of 100 cubic feet, with the following areas
excluded: machinery spaces, bridge/navigation spaces, and other minor
spaces essential to the operation of the ship.